Copyright 101

As the owner of the copyright for a work, have several options: 

• selling, licensing, or otherwise transferring the copyright
• releasing it to the Public Domain

There are several ways to license works in copyright, and Creative Commons is the most common other than for software, which is licensed using GNU. 

Creative Commons (CC) licenses provide a free, standardized way for everyone to grant public permission (or reserve specific rights) to use creative works under copyright law. They make it easy for users to know what they can or cannot do with creative work.

While copyright operates under an "all rights reserved" approach, CC licenses created by Creative Commons, an international nonprofit, operate under copyright law but take a "some rights reserved" approach.

Although they are legally enforceable tools, they were designed in a way that was intended to make them accessible to non-lawyers and encourage the open sharing of knowledge.

Three License Layers

A Creative Commons license has three layers:

• The legal code is the base layer and traditional legal tool. This contains the "lawyer-readable" terms and conditions that are legally enforceable in court.
• The commons deeds are the webpages that lay out the key license terms in easy-to-understand language that the average person can understand. They summarize the legal code but are not legally enforceable.
• The machine-readable code is designed to provide a summary of key freedoms and obligations written in a format that software, search engines, and other technology can understand.

How are they used?

Creators choose the CC license that suits their needs and communicate this in a way that is clear to people who engage with that work.

Creators should list the license they've chosen. If available online, users should link to the license they've chosen. HTML code is available from the Creative Commons license chooser. 

The Licenses

Creative Commons licenses are standardized tools to provide options for creators who want to share their work with the public rather than reserving all rights under copyright. 

Four License Elements

Four license elements combine to make six license options. All licenses include the BY condition, which means that the creator must be attributed in all cases. Beyond that, the licenses vary whether (1) commercial use of the work is permitted; and (2) whether the work can be adapted, and if so, under which conditions. 

• Attribution (BY)
• ShareAlike (SA)
• NonCommercial (NC)
• NoDerivatives (ND)

Six Licenses

The six Creative Commons licenses, organized from least to most restricted in terms of freedoms granted to users of licensed content are:

Attribution (CC BY)

Allows people to use the work for any purpose (even commercially and even in modified form) as long as they cite the creator.

Attribution-ShareAlike (BY-SA)

Allows people to use the work for any purpose (even commercially and even in modified form), as long as they give attribution to the creator and make any adaptations they share with others available under the same or a compatible license. This is CC’s version of a copyleft license
(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copyleft), and it is the license required for content uploaded to Wikipedia, for example.

Attribution-NonCommercial (BY-NC)

Allows people to use and modify the work for noncommercial purposes only, and only as long as they give attribution to the creator.

Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike (BY-NC-SA)

Allows people to use the work for noncommercial purposes only, and only as long as they give attribution to the creator and make any adaptations they share with others available under the same or a compatible license.

Attribution-NoDerivatives (BY-ND)

Allows people to use the unadapted work for any purpose (even commercially), as long as they give attribution to the creator.

Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives (BY-NC-ND)

The most restrictive Creative Commons license, which allows people to use the unadapted work for noncommercial purposes, and only if they attribute the license holder.

Public Domain

Creative Commons also makes its "Public Domain" dedication tool available for creators who want to disclaim copyright entirely for a "no rights reserved" approach. 

License Compatibility

When combining work with Creative Commons licenses, remember that some licenses are not compatible. Check to make sure the works you hope to combine will (legally) work together. 

Content derived from: Copyright Basics, Global Aspects of Copyright, The Public Domain, and Exceptions and Limitations to Copyright by Creative Commons. CC BY 4.0.